THE RED ROOSTER

Just announced during the Paramatta v Manly game . Ben Hunt has requested an immediate release from SGI as not happy with the direction the club is taking More to follow on social media

Anybody criticising Ben Stokes for declaring on 8 / 393 is missing one fundamental.point. Bazball is all about risk-taking and in order to win you have to be prepared to lose. If England had knocked over Warner or Khawaja today's headlines would be different. Of course, this means England could be ob the butt-end of a near 200 deficit come Monday evening with Lyon ready to exploit a crumbling pitch but if you take the Bazball approach is this not a challenge to the vaunted English seam attack to restrict Australia to a total near the England score.

Eve of the Ashes and though I try to avoid controversy on this board, Its 3-1 to Australia for me. Australia is a properly balanced side with both pace and spin. England by contrast relay heavily on the big guns to fire for one of Anderson or Broad to get a 7 fer or Root, Stokes or Bairstow to get a "daddy hundred". Now it's perfectly possible for this to happen for England as it did at Headingley in 2019 but its a five match series coming up and such a performance is hard to repeat. Australia have a domestic structure that allows for the production of a CHampion test team. England do not have such a structure, as evidenced by the dearth of spin options once Leach was injured. Above all else Cricket is woven into Australian society across all classes in a way that in England it no longer is. I would love to be proved wrong but tat's how I see it. An English defeat would bring Bazball into question which would be the wrong approach. Regardless of the result, England have to continue to play in a positive manner not just for crowd entertainment but to mask deficiencies in the line up. Hopefully someone amongst the powers that be will take the long-term view and sort out the English domestic structure and widen the games base to include more of the population. I doubt it but we must live in hope. As for Kent failing to win when setting a total of 500 my reaction on hearing the score was...

Winning Teams - Penrith Panthers, Newcastle Knights, Paramatta Eels, Melbourne Storm and Cronulla Sharks Points - 238 Away wins - 2 Poll - Sharks v Bulldogs - Dogs can score points but also concede at a rapid rate. After the last few weeeks this is a Sharkies, statement game I agonised over the Cows v Penny Panthers but ther Cows have too many of te herd missing and though weakened the Panthers have the nous to get by. I might regret not tipping Wests though...

Remember people its an Origin Round so teams are not as you might have expected Razor like close shaves North Queensland Cowboys v Penrith Panthers - Always hard to get a result in tropical Townsville doubly so with Jason Taumalolo rejoing the Herd Wests Tigers v Melbourne Storm - If Wests are ever going to get one on the Storm this is it with no cameron Munster or Harry Grant Good Luck with your tips

From where I live to Plough Lane Wimbledon - 1 Hour 47 Minutes by Public Transport 29.1 Miles away and would take me 9 Hours 45 mins to walk there. and remember I do go to big RL Finals and England games in the North as well.

What a stoush between Brisbane and Newcastle, at last some love for Newcastle on this board but you win premierships by grinding out results like this. So Brisbane the happier camp of the two in more ways than one, if that's not too confusing. The Roosters were well and truly schooled by the Penny Panthers in two game IIRC the combined scoreline is 74-10 about as comprehensive as it gets. JWH v Spence Leniu reminded me of Canadian Ice Hockey, in that with the game gone the losing sidfes enfocer starts a conflict to keep the crowd engaged. Incidentally JWH will probably be coming to a Super League ground near you next year if remours are true... Post game Trent Robinson admits https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/nrl-2023-trent-robinson-james-tedesco-sydney-roosters-jared-waereahargreaves-spencer-leniu-round-15/news-story/571f23762a8652c34adee8ef5634a547 Well that's two of us Trent, I wonder if uncle Nick thinks the same..... Good result for the Red V at Kogarah with thev Wabbits in a bit of slump without the Man-Child. You could say there not Trellily good at the moment without him.

On a knife edge Gold Coast v Wests - AJ Brimson back for Titans and they can score points. Sea Eagles v Dolphins - Silvertails Turbo charged wheras Dolphins have a few out St George-Illawarra v South Sydney - Was I tempted to go Dragons but this is at Kogarah and not the 'gong and that does make a difference. Roosters v Penny Panthers - No Nathan Cleary makes this closer than it would have been Melbourne Storm v Cronulla Sharks - Sharkies blew their Top 4 audition last week and I do not see a win in Victoria. Bulldogs v Paramatta EEls - Dylan Browns suspension is a problem for the Eels but I have been bitten too often by tipping the Dogs on here so Ells it is. Last weeks wowser team The Cows are on a bye week Good luck with your tips

Mr Caplan probably reads this forum you know and it was a serious article. if wrong on its basic premise. At the risk opf incurring a ban from TRL for posting an article from their competition - you read it in its full glory below. https://rugbyleaguehub.com/rugby-re-united-an-almost-inevitable-direction-of-travel/

Winners - Gold Coast Titans, Canberra Raiders, Manly Sea Eagles, South Sydney, Brisbane Broncos, Penrith Panthers, Melbourne Storm and Paramatta Eels. Points - 340 Home Wins - 5 Poll - Melbourne Storm v Cronulla Sharks

Cough - Phil Caplan and Forty-20 magazine a couple of months ago. https://www.loverugbyleague.com/post/paper-talk-rugby-code-merger-st-helens-hangover

Trent Robinson breathes a little easier this evening....

Ho hum. A Test that taught the watching public very little. Once the ball goes soft only Tongue, who I have sightly altered my opinion about, bowling at 85mph plus makes any impression. Leach, who may have been ill, got carted as did Joe Root, on what was a flat wicket. And Engfland allegedly,want Flat wickets against Australia... Credit to the Irish boys for making this point with Mark Adair doing a Lance Klusener impression. But he is supposed to be in the side for his bowling. My question is this, If Ireland were a County Side which division would they be in ?

Afraid the Ireland game is not telling us anything we do not already know about England batting and reserve bowling. Crawley Does not look the part as a Test opener I am sad to say as a Kent Member and Broad was head and shoulders above the rest of the seam attack. He may not play in the first Ashes Test but it's a bit of a reach to play Anderson, Robinson and Wood together with Stokes wonky knee. And if the pitch is that flat Australia's batsmen will be less obliging than the Irish.

Winners - Canberra Raiders, New Zealand Warriors, South Sydney, Cronulla Sharks, Sydney Roosters, Melbourne Storm and Penrith Panthers Points - 334 Away wins - 3 Poll - 3 games A lot of games are going to be tight but the Queensland sides will suffer most from Origin one. And if the Roosters lose again, Uncle Nick will not be happy and maybe the Media might just question Trent Robinson's coaching # Just saying.

Upwards of £ 60 a ticket a Lords today for a glorified trial game at which Ireland rest their key player Josh Little and England have a bowl out for the fourth seamer position. Not a big crowd expected - in 2019 tickets were £35 a pop. and there is a rail strike on days 2 and 3. England really need to win convincingly within 3 days for this to be meaningful and I am a bit perplexed that Ben Duckett is opening with Zak Crawley. Nothing against Josh Tongue either, but I am of the view that you should earn an England cap rather than be given one because of opposition and circumstances. England on a hiding to nothing in this game and are going to be undercooked against what on paper, is a superior Australian side whose own warm up game is against India in the World Test Championship. As the song goes, there may be trouble ahead.

Post - Origin 1 so tipsters need to make careful note of who is playing and who ios not Bat-Flip Games West Tigers v Canberra - Wests coming off a bye week and Canberra untouched by too many origin concerns - Closer than many think NZ Warriors v Dolphins - The old Warriors returned at Napier finding ways to lose against the impressivev Dolphins who find ways tio win - Try Fest in store Cronulla Sharks v Brisbane Broncos - Crunch game for both to determine who are contenders and who are pretenders, With a lot of players backing up from Origin the odds are against the Bronx but will the Sharkies look contention in the eye and blink? Sydney Roosters v Canterbury Bulldogs - Upset Klaxon alert, take a look at the side the Roosters are putting out and remember their recent disjointed form. IIf Josh Addo-Carr plays will this be the case of the Fox loose in the Chook Pen? North Queensland Cowboys v Melbourne Storm - Never easy to go to tropical Townsville and win which always gives the Cows an advantage - Will Melbourne start flagging in the hear Good luck with your tips and watxch the team sheets

https://www.foxsports.com.au/nrl/nrl-premiership/nrl-2023-jimmy-brings-jason-ryles-st-george-illawarra-dragons-coach-sydney-roosters-ryan-carr-round-13/news-story/2f285f5f6567891255c39ac7ea3b2d9c

Sorry chaps been out at Canterbury for the Cricket. Edgy Contests South Sydney v Canberra Raiders - Not a lot of Origin absentees in either side Newcastle Knights v Manly Sea Eagles - Not a lot of love for the Knights on this boards and, maybe after last week justified, but they can score points, are at home and face a silvertails side shorn of key players Good luck with your tips , and if you hafe a gut feeling about a contest, then go with it and don't be like me write about it, but then tip the other way.

Winners - Dolphins, Paramatta Eels, New Zealand Warriors, South Sydney and Newcastle Knights Points - 218 Home Wins - 5 Poll - Knights v Sea Eagles

RICKY ROUTED RAIDERS I should have gone with my gut instinct on a Canberra Calamity. All winning streaks end and Manly had a lot of players coming back.. another Tip down the drain

Go Doggies !. I knew my faith in Gus recruitment would pay off eventually........

I would point out I tipped Souffs on thios board before their recent winning streak

The Cows have well and truly milked - That West Tigers scoreline is the shock of the season. I can feel it in my bones that Manly are going to rout Ricky's Raiders.. and I did not tip them...

Would not say that either result on Friday was that much of an upset. The Roosters are playing badly and SGI by way of contrast, are not as bad a side as their position in the table would suggest. The biggest problem the wabbits have is inconsistency and for once Paramatta, who are a different side with Michell Moses, turned up. That does not shake my conviction that Souffs are the "smokey" in this years Premiership. All three games tomorrow could go either way.